Interconnect module

ABSTRACT

A mount apparatus includes a separate spring contact and wire wrap pin assembly as well as having a sandwich construction to prevent the spring contact and wire wrap pin from being pushed out of their retention positions. In one embodiment, a mount apparatus includes a front cover having a plurality of receptacles, a back cover having a plurality of through holes, and a circuit board assembly sandwiched between the front cover and the back cover. The circuit board assembly includes a board having a plurality of through holes aligned with the receptacles of the front cover and the through holes of the back cover, a plurality of contacts retained in a first set of the through holes of the board of the circuit board assembly, and a plurality of pins retained in a second set of the through holes of the board of the circuit board assembly. A first end of each contact is extended towards and exposed in a corresponding receptacle of the front cover and stopped by the front cover, and a second end of each contact is extended towards and stopped by the back cover. A first end of each pin is extended towards and stopped by the front cover, and a second end of each pin is extended towards and projected from a corresponding through hole of the back cover. Further, the circuit board assembly includes a trace electrically connecting each contact to each corresponding pin.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/939,203,filed Aug. 24, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,511,330, which application isincorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to cross-connect systems and, inparticular, to a mount apparatus for a jack assembly in a digitalcross-connect system.

BACKGROUND

A digital cross-connect system (DSX) provides a location forinterconnecting two digital transmission paths. DSX is generally locatedin one or more frames or bays in a central office, e.g., a centraltelephone office. DSX also provides jack access to the transmissionpaths.

DSX jacks are known in the art to provide spring contacts for receivingtip and ring plugs. The jacks are commonly ganged in a common housingthat is mounted on a frame. The jacks are typically hard wired to wiretermination pins or other connection locations that are mounted on aside of the housing opposite plug access openings.

Recent DSX systems include U.S. Pat. No. 4,840,568 (the '568 patent) andU.S. Pat. No. 5,393,249 (the '249 patent), commonly assigned to ADCTelecommunications, Inc., and are incorporated herein by reference. Inassembling a DSX system as in the '568 patent, an operator typicallyuses a wire wrap gun to drive a wire or cable onto a wire wrap pin thatextends from a back side of the mount. The opposite end of the wire wrappin is a spring contact for contacting an electrical contact of a jackcircuit board. During assembly, it might be possible for the operator toapply excessive force in driving the wire or cable onto a wire wrappin/spring contact. The excessive force tends to push the wire wrappin/spring contact out of a retention position on the mount.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,204 (the '204 patent) describes an electricalterminal with a compliant pin section. This patent describes transitionsections that resist movement of the pin leg sections toward each other.This movement generates an outwardly directed spring force normal to theplanes of the leg sections. In other words, the pin leg sections aredesigned to have a gap therebetween and the transition sections aredesigned to keep the gap between the pin leg sections thus creating aspring force. This type of a compliant pin has disadvantages. One suchdisadvantage is that the creation of a spring force as described canweaken the spring force exerted at an opposite end of the compliant pin.

Therefore, improvements are desired.

SUMMARY

One aspect of the present disclosure relates to a mount apparatus havinga separate spring contact and wire wrap pin assembly as well as having amulti-layer or sandwich construction to prevent the spring contact andwire wrap pin from being pushed out of their retention positions.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a mount apparatus includesa front cover having a plurality of receptacles, a back cover having aplurality of through holes, and a circuit board assembly sandwichedbetween the front cover and the back cover. The circuit board assemblyincludes a board having a plurality of through holes aligned with thereceptacles of the front cover and the through holes of the back cover,a plurality of contacts retained in a first set of the through holes ofthe board of the circuit board assembly, and a plurality of pinsretained in a second set of the through holes of the board of thecircuit board assembly. A first end of each contact is extended towardsand exposed in a corresponding receptacle of the front cover and stoppedby the front cover, and a second end of each contact is extended towardsand stopped by the back cover. A first end of each pin is extendedtowards and stopped by the front cover, and a second end of each pin isextended towards and projected from a corresponding through hole of theback cover. Further, the circuit board assembly includes a traceelectrically connecting each contact to each corresponding pin.

Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a jack assembly fora cross-connect system, for example a DSX system, which not onlyincorporates electronic component surface mount technology into the jackassembly, but also permits an operator to perform desired cross-connectwiring without need to access a rear portion of the system.

In one example embodiment of the present disclosure, the jack assemblyincludes a jack circuit board having a plurality of electrical contactsat one side, a plurality of electrical wires, a jack mount for mountingthe jack circuit board and electrically cross-connecting the electricalcontacts of the jack circuit board to the electrical wires. The jackmount includes a front cover having a plurality of receptacles, a backcover having a plurality of through holes, a circuit board assemblysandwiched between the front cover and the back cover. The circuit boardassembly includes a board having a plurality of through holes alignedwith the receptacles of the front cover and the through holes of theback cover, a plurality of contacts retained in a first set of thethrough holes of the board of the circuit board assembly, and aplurality of pins retained in a second set of the through holes of theboard of the circuit board assembly. A first end of each contact isextended towards and exposed in a corresponding receptacle of the frontcover and stopped by the front cover, and a second end of each contactis extended towards and stopped by the back cover. A first end of eachpin is extended towards and stopped by the front cover, and a second endof each pin is extended towards and projected from a correspondingthrough hole of the back cover. Further, the circuit board assemblyincludes a trace electrically connecting each contact to eachcorresponding pin. The electrical contacts of the jack circuit board areelectrically connected to the contacts of the circuit board assembly ofthe jack mount. Accordingly, the electrical wires are electricallyconnected to the pins of the circuit board assembly of the jack mount.

In addition to many other advantages, the present disclosure provides amore robust mount apparatus for a jack assembly in a cross-connectsystem.

A further aspect of the present disclosure relates to a method ofcross-connect wiring a first cable to a second cable. In one embodiment,the method includes the step of providing a jack circuit board having anelectrical contact at a first side and a termination pin at a secondside, the first cable being coupled to the termination pin at the secondside of the jack circuit board, the step of providing a mount having afront cover, a back cover, and a circuit board assembly sandwichedbetween the front and back covers, the front cover, back cover, andcircuit board assembly being configured and arranged to retain a springcontact and a wire wrap pin on the circuit board assembly, the springcontact and the wire wrap pin being physically separate from each otherand electrically in contact via a trace disposed on the circuit boardassembly, the step of wiring the second cable onto the wire wrap pinwhich extends from a back side of the mount, and the step of sliding thefirst side of the jack circuit board onto the front cover of the mountwherein the electrical contact of the jack circuit board is coupled tothe spring contact of the circuit board assembly of the mount.

The method further includes the step of replacing the jack circuit boardwith a second jack circuit board, the second jack circuit board havingan electrical contact at a first side and a termination pin at a secondside, a third cable being coupled to the termination pin at the secondside of the second jack circuit board. The replacing step includes thestep of pulling the jack circuit board out of the mount, and the step ofsliding the first side of the second jack circuit board onto the frontcover of the mount wherein the electrical contact of the second jackcircuit board is coupled to the spring contact of the circuit boardassembly of the mount, whereby cross-connect wiring between the secondand third cables can be performed without need for access to the backside of the mount.

Another aspect of the present disclosure includes an electrical terminaladapted for insertion into a through hole of a circuit board. Theelectrical terminal includes a first section, a second section, and athird section. The first section receives an electrical contact and hasfirst and second spring arms proximate to each other at a contact pointand are configured to exert a spring force to retain the electricalcontact. The second section is adapted for insertion into the throughhole of the circuit board. The second section has first and second pinmembers proximate to each other. The first and second pin sectionsdefine slots configured to exert a spring force to retain the electricalterminal in the through hole of the circuit board. The third section isintegral with the first and second sections. The third section has aplurality of stop members configured to prevent the electrical terminalfrom being pushed through the through hole of the circuit board.

Another aspect of the present disclosure includes a system. The systemincludes a frame and a mount apparatus. The mount apparatus includesfeatures previously described.

Another aspect of the present disclosure includes a mount apparatus foruse in a cross-connect system. The mount apparatus includes a frontcover having a plurality of receptacles, a back cover having a pluralityof through holes, and a circuit board assembly sandwiched between thefront cover and the back cover, the circuit board assembly includes aboard having a plurality of through holes aligned with the receptaclesof the front cover and the through holes of the back cover. The circuitboard assembly also includes a plurality of contacts retained in a firstset of the through holes of the board of the circuit board assembly. Afirst end of each contact is extended towards and exposed in acorresponding receptacle of the front cover and stopped by the frontcover. A second end of each contact is extended towards and projectstowards the back cover. The assembly further includes a plurality ofpins retained in a second set of the through holes of the board of thecircuit board assembly. A first end of the each pin is extended towardsand stopped by the front cover. A second end of each pin is extendedtowards and projected from a corresponding through hole of the backcover. A trace electrically connects each contact to each correspondingpin.

Another aspect of the present disclosure includes a mount apparatus thatincludes a front cover, having a plurality of receptacles, a back cover,having a plurality of through holes, and a circuit board assemblysandwiched between the front cover and the back cover. The circuit boardassembly includes a board having a plurality of through holes alignedwith the receptacles of the front cover and the through holes of theback cover and includes a plurality of contacts retained in a first setof the through holes of the board of the circuit board assembly. A firstend of each contact is extended towards and exposed in a correspondingreceptacle of the front cover and stopped by the front cover. A secondend of each contact is extended towards and projects toward the backcover.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring now to the drawings in which like reference numbers representcorresponding parts throughout:

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing front, top, and rightsides of one embodiment of a mount apparatus having a front cover, acircuit board assembly, and a back cover in accordance with the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 is a left side view of the mount apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front side view of the mount apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a bottom side view of the mounted apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing front, top, and right sides of oneembodiment of a circuit board assembly of the mount apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a front side view of the circuit board assembly of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a backside view of the circuit board assembly of FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing front, top, and right sides of oneembodiment of a spring contact of the circuit board assembly of FIG. 5;

FIG. 9 is a left side view of the spring contact of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a front side view of the spring contact of FIG. 8;

FIG. 11 is an enlarged view of a middle portion of the spring contact ofFIG. 10;

FIG. 12 is a bottom side view of the spring contact of FIG. 8;

FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of the spring contact of FIG. 10;

FIG. 14 is a front side view of one embodiment of a wire wrap pin of thecircuit board assembly of FIG. 5;

FIG. 15 is a left side view of the wire wrap pin of FIG. 14;

FIG. 16 is a front side view of one embodiment of the front cover ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 17 is a backside view of the front cover of FIG. 1;

FIG. 18 is a right side view of the front cover of FIG. 1;

FIG. 19 is a bottom side view of the front cover of FIG. 1;

FIG. 20 is a perspective view showing front, top, and right sides of thefront cover of FIG. 1;

FIG. 21 is a perspective view showing back, top, left sides of the frontcover of FIG. 1;

FIG. 22 is a front side view of one embodiment of the back cover of FIG.1;

FIG. 23 is a backside view of the back cover of FIG. 1;

FIG. 24 is a right side view of the back cover of FIG. 1;

FIG. 25 is a topside view of the back cover of FIG. 1;

FIG. 26 is a backside view of the back cover of FIG. 23 showing oneembodiment of ring-and-tip plug-in ports;

FIG. 27 is a perspective view of an example embodiment illustratingfront, top, and right sides of another embodiment of a spring contact ofthe circuit board assembly of FIG. 5;

FIG. 28 is a front view of the spring contact of FIG. 27;

FIG. 29 is a side view of the spring contact of FIG. 27;

FIG. 30 is an enlarged view of a middle portion of the spring contact ofFIG. 27;

FIG. 31 is a bottom side view of the spring contact of FIG. 27;

FIG. 32 is a top view of a chassis used to retain the mount apparatus ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 33 is a front view of the chassis of FIG. 32;

FIG. 34 is an exploded view of the chassis of FIG. 32;

FIG. 35 is a rear view of the chassis of FIG. 32; and

FIG. 36 is a perspective view of the chassis of FIG. 32 and a jackassembly for insertion into the chassis.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The mount apparatus of the present disclosure receives a jack assemblyin a cross-connect system and retains separate spring contacts and wirewrap pins of the mount apparatus. The mount apparatus is configured andarranged in a multi-layer or sandwich construction to prevent the springcontacts and wire wrap pins from being pushed out of their retentionpositions.

Referring now to the figures, one example embodiment of a mountapparatus 20 is shown in FIG. 1 in exploded view. The mount apparatus 20includes a front cover 22, a circuit board assembly 24, and a back cover26. The circuit board assembly 24 is sandwiched between the front cover22 and the back cover 26. The front cover 22 of the mount apparatus 20includes arrays of receptacles 28 capable of receiving a plurality ofjack circuit boards as shown in the '568 patent and the '249 patentherein incorporated by reference in their entirety. As shown in thesepatents, a jack circuit board includes, at one end, a plurality of jackports capable of electrically coupling to plugs on the ends of cables orwires, and at the other end, a plurality of electrical contacts to bereceived in the receptacles 28 and to be in electrical contact withspring contacts 30 disposed in the receptacles 28.

Referring now to FIGS. 1-7 and 16-26, the spring contacts 30 areretained in a first set of through holes 32, FIG. 7, of a board 25 ofthe circuit board assembly 24. The spring contacts 30 are disposed incolumns, each column receiving a set of electrical contacts (not shown)of a jack circuit board 600, illustrated and described in connectionwith FIG. 36. A first end 34 of each spring contact 30 is extendedtowards and exposed in a corresponding receptacle 28 of the front cover22 and stopped by the front cover 22, and a second end 36 of each springcontact 30 is extended towards and stopped by the back cover 26.

A plurality of wire wrap pins 38 are retained in a second set of throughholes 40, FIG. 7, of the board 25 of the circuit board assembly 24. Afirst end 42 of each pin 38 is extended towards and stopped by the frontcover 22, and a second end 44 of each pin 38 is extended towards andprojected from a corresponding through hole 46 of the back cover 26.Thus when wires are wrapped to the pins 38, the front cover 22 preventsthe pins from being pushed through or out of the circuit board 25.

A trace (not shown) generally disposed on the board 25 electricallyconnects each spring contact 30 to each corresponding pin 38, such thatthe spring contact 30 and the pin 38 are physically separate from eachother yet electrically in contact via the trace on the board 25.Accordingly, in assembly, the electrical contacts of the jack circuitboard 600 are electrically connected to the spring contacts 30 of thecircuit board assembly 24 at one side, and electrical cables or wiresare electrically connected to the wire wrap pins 38 of the circuit boardassembly 24 at the other side.

The front cover 22 and the back cover 26 further include a plurality ofmating male and female members 48, 50 to press fit the front cover 22and the back cover 26 together, sandwiching the board assembly 24 therebetween. The board 25 of the circuit board assembly 24 further includesa plurality of holes 52 through which the mating male members 48 extendtowards the mating female members 50 so that the circuit board assembly24 is securely sandwiched between the front cover 22 and the back cover26.

The front cover 22, the board 25, and the back cover 26 further includea plurality of through holes 54, 56, 58, respectively. The through holes54, 56, 58 are aligned to each other to allow the mount apparatus 20 tobe mounted in a frame, or chassis 400 as shown in FIGS. 32-34.

Referring to FIGS. 32-36, the chassis 400 is configured to retain aplurality of mount apparatuses 20 as illustrated. Screws 402 areinserted through the through holes 54, 56, 58 and are attached inretention holes 404, retaining the mount apparatus 20 in the chassis400. The chassis 400 also includes a power bus 406 that provides powerto the mount apparatuses 20 during operation. The power bus 406 includesa power strip 407, a plurality of power receptacles 409, and a powerintake 410. The power bus 406 receives power through the power intake410. The power strip 407 transfers power to the power receptacles 409.Referring back to FIG. 1, the mount apparatus includes a power plug 408.The power plug is arranged and configured to be received by the powerreceptacle 409 in the chassis 400 of FIG. 34. The mount apparatus 20 isinserted or plugged into the chassis 400. Thus, the mount apparatus 20is powered by the power bus 406. Each mount apparatus 20 of theplurality of mount 20 apparatuses is individually powered, such that ifone mount apparatus 20 is removed from the chassis 400, the remainingmount apparatuses 20 still receive electrical power from the power bus406 through their respective power plugs 408. The mount apparatuses 20are powered to provide tracing abilities for troubleshooting. Thechassis 400 also includes first and second cable guides 420, 422 forhandling a plurality of cables.

Referring now to FIG. 36, the assembled chassis 400 is illustrated inperspective view. A plurality of jack assemblies 600 can now be insertedand electrically connected into the chassis 400. The jack assembly 600is retained in slots 602 within the chassis frame 604. Electricalcontacts 606 are inserted into the spring contacts 30 of the mountapparatus 20, providing electrical communication between the jackassembly 600 and the mount apparatus 20.

The front cover 22 includes a plurality of spacers 60 disposed on abackside 62 of the front cover 22, which extend toward the board 25 ofthe circuit board assembly 24. The spacers 60 provide clearance or spacefor the spring contacts 30 disposed therein. It is noted that thenumbers, location, size, shape of the spacers 60 can be varied withoutdeparting from the present disclosure.

The back cover 26 also includes a spacer 64 disposed on a front side 66of the back cover 26, which extend towards the board 25 of the circuitboard assembly 24. The spacer 64, mating members 50, and members 68 thatdefine the through holes 58, provide clearance or space for the wirewrap pins 38 disposed therein. It is appreciated that the numbers,location, size, shape of the spacer 64, mating members 50, and themembers 68 can be varied without departing from the present disclosure.

FIG. 26 also illustrates an example embodiment of the through holes 46from a back side view of the back cover 26, whereby the through holes 46are marked as ring-and-tip plug-in ports.

Now referring to FIGS. 8-13, each contact 30 includes a pair of springarms 70, 72. The contact 30 has a first contact section 74 proximate tothe first end 34 of the spring arms 70, 72. The first contact section 74of the two spring arms 70, 72 is spring-biased against each other in anormal mode. The first end 34 of the spring arm 70, 72 is configured tobe a receiving end for receiving an electrical contact, for example, theelectrical contact 600 of the jack circuit board 600.

The contact 30 also has a second contact section 76 proximate the secondend 36 of the spring arms 70, 72. The second contact section 76 of thetwo spring arms 70, 72 is spring-biased against each other in anoperation mode where the first end 34 of the spring arms 70, 72 receivethe electrical contact, for example, the electrical contact 600 of ajack circuit board 600.

The contact 30 further includes a third contact section 78 proximate amiddle portion 80 of the spring arms 70, 72. The third contact section78 of the two spring arms 70, 72 is spring-biased against each other inthe operation mode where the first end 34 of the spring arms 70, 72receive the electrical contact, for example, the electrical contact 606of a jack circuit board 600.

The spring arms 70, 72 might include two pieces 82, 84 that are integralto each other at the middle portion 80 of the spring arms 70, 72 andsplit from each other at the first end 34 of the spring arms 70, 72. Thetwo pieces 82, 84 of each spring arm 70, 72 provide resiliency of thespring arm and ensure proper contact between the contact 30 and theelectrical contact, for example, the electrical contact of a jackcircuit board.

The contact 30 further includes first, second, and third stop members86, 88, 90. The first stop member 86 is integrally connected to thespring arm 70 proximate the middle portion 80 of the contact 30. Thethird stop member 90 is integrally connected to the spring member 72proximate the middle portion 80 of the contact 30. The second stopmember 88 is integrally connected to both of the spring arms 70, 72. Thefirst and third stop members 86, 90 are oriented parallel to each other,and the second stop member 88 is oriented perpendicular to the first andsecond members 86, 90. The first, second, and third stop members 86, 88,90 are integrally connected to the third contact section 78 proximatethe middle portion 80 of the contact 30 and extended along alongitudinal axis 92 of the contact 30. The stop members 86, 88, 90define a shoulder surface 94.

The stop members 86, 88, 90 are disposed between the front cover 22 andthe circuit board assembly 24 and are capable of preventing the contact30 from being pushed out of the through hole 32 of the board 25 from thefront cover 22 side. The shoulder surface 94 is disposed between thefront cover 22 and the circuit board assembly 24 and is capable ofpreventing the contact 30 from being pushed out of the through hole 32of the board 25 from the back cover 26 side.

Now referring to FIGS. 14 and 15, the pin 38 includes a pair of enlargedsections 92, 93 and a pair of recessed sections 94 (one is shown in FIG.14, and the other one is in mirror image of the one shown). The enlargedsections 92, 93 are disposed on first and second sides 94, 96 of the pin38, respectively. The recessed sections 94 are disposed on third andfourth sides 98, 100 of the pin 38, respectively. Each of the enlargedsections 92, 93 is disposed next to each of the recessed sections 94,and the enlarged sections 92 and the recessed sections 94 are disposedproximate the first end 42 of the pin 38. A portion of the enlargedsections 92 and the recessed sections 94 are press-fit in the throughhole 40 of the board 25.

The first end 42 of the pin 38 is disposed adjacent to the front cover22. The front cover 22 is arranged and configured such that the frontcover 22 is capable of preventing the pin 38 from being pushed out fromthe front cover 22 side.

The front and back covers 22, 26 are preferably made of a plasticmaterial. The board 25 of the circuit board assembly 24 is preferablymade of a plastic material. It is appreciated that other materials canbe used within the scope of the present invention.

Referring back to FIG. 36, in use, the operator slides a selected jack600 into the chassis 400 where the electrical contacts of the jackcircuit board are received by the front cover 22 wherein the electricalcontacts 606 of the jack circuit board 600 are coupled to a column ofspring contacts 30 of the circuit board assembly 24. The operatorcouples a first cable to a termination pin of a jack circuit board 606.The operator couples a second cable to the wire wrap pin 38 retained onthe circuit board assembly 24 that extends from a back side of the backcover 26. The circuit can be accessed through the ports on the front ofthe jack 600.

Now referring to FIGS. 27-29, another example embodiment of a springcontact 200 is illustrated. The contact 200 includes a first section274, a second section 276, and third section 280. The first section 274includes first and second spring arms 270, 272. The first section 274 isconfigured to be a receiving end for receiving an electrical contact,for example, the electrical contact 606 of a jack circuit board 600. Thefirst and second spring arms, 270, 272 are proximate to each other at acontact point 278. The electrical contact is inserted between thecontact point 278. The first and second spring arms 270, 272 exert afirst spring force B at a first end 234 of the contact 200 at thecontact point 278 sufficient to retain the electrical contact.

The first and second spring arms 270, 272 include first and secondpieces 282, 284 that are integral to each other at the third section 280of the contact 200 and split from each other at the first end 234 of thespring arms 270, 272. The first and second pieces 282, 284 of eachspring arm 270, 272 provide resiliency to the spring arm and ensureproper contact between the contact 200 and the electrical contact, forexample, the electrical contact 606 of a jack circuit board 600.

The first section 274 also includes first and second ribs 308, 310attached to or integral with the first and second spring arms 270, 272,respectively. The first and second ribs 308, 310 strengthen the firstand second spring arms 270, 272, respectively, and increase theretention function of the first section 274.

The second section 276 is proximate a second end 236 of the contact 200.The second section 276 includes first and second pin members 300, 302.Typically, the first and second pin members 300, 302 are proximate toeach other, or, in other words, there is not a space between the firstand second pin members 300, 302. Thus, there is not a spring forceexerted in direction A. This is advantageous because a spring forceexerted in direction A reduces the spring force exerted in direction Bat the first section 274, and therefore, reduces the ability of thefirst section 274 to retain an electrical contact. By having a thirdsection 278 that does not exert a spring force in the first direction A,the retention ability of the first section 274 is increased.

Preferably, the first and second pin members 300, 302, include first andsecond end sections 304, 306, respectively. The first and second endsections 304, 306 are configured as bull noses as illustrated. Thisconfiguration is advantageous because it facilitates insertion of thecontact 200 into the board 25, FIG. 1.

Typically, the first and second pin members 300, 302, include first andsecond transition sections 316, 318, respectively. The first and secondtransition sections 316, 318 are configured to maintain the first andsecond pin members 300, 302 as illustrated in FIG. 29. In other words,the first and second transition sections 316, 318 are configured suchthat there is not a space between the first and second pin members 300,302 for reasons discussed previously.

The first and second pin members 300, 302 define first and second slots312, 314, respectively. Typically, the first and second slots areconfigured as elliptical slots; however, any suitable shape can be used.The first and second slots are designed to exert a spring force indirection C, as illustrated. Upon insertion of the contact 200 into aboard 25, FIG. 1, the first and second pin sections 300, 302 arecompressed in a direction D. The resilience of the first and second pinsections 300, 302 exert the spring force in the direction C as the firstand second pin sections attempt to uncompress. It is noted that thespring force exerted in the direction C is perpendicular to the springforce exerted by the first section 274 in direction B. Thus, the springforce in direction C does not reduce the spring force in direction B.

The contact 200 further includes a third section 280. The third contactsection 280 is a transition area between the first contact section 274and the second contact section 276 of the contact 200. The third section280 includes first, second, and third stop members 286, 288, 290. Thefirst, second, and third stop members 286, 288, 290 are integrallyconnected to the contact 200 proximate the middle portion 280 of thecontact 200. The first, second, and third stop members 286, 288, 290 areoriented parallel to each other. The stop members 286, 288, 290 define ashoulder surface 294.

The stop members 286, 288, 290 are disposed between the front cover 22,FIG. 1, and the circuit board assembly 24, FIG. 1, and are capable ofpreventing the contact 200 from being pushed out of the through hole 32of the board 25 from the front cover 22 side. The shoulder surface 294is disposed between the front cover 22 and the circuit board assembly 24and is capable of preventing the contact 200 from being pushed out ofthe through hole 32 of the board 25 from the back cover 26 side.

The third section 280 also includes a push surface 299. The push surface299 facilitates insertion of the contact 200 into the circuit boardassembly 25. An insertion tool can use the push surface 299 to applyforce to the contact 200 for insertion without comprising any of theother aspects or components of the contact 200.

The various embodiments described above are provided by way ofillustration only and should not be construed to limit the invention.Those skilled in the art will readily recognize various modificationsand changes that may be made to the present invention without followingthe example embodiments and applications illustrated and describedherein, and without departing from the true spirit and scope of thepresent invention, which is set forth in the following claims.

1. A mount apparatus for use in a cross-connect system, the mountapparatus comprising: a) a front side and a back side; b) a circuitboard positioned between the front side and the back side; c) jackcircuit board contacts electrically connected to the circuit board andaccessible from the front side; d) wire wrap pins electrically connectedto the circuit board and accessible from the back side; e) wherein thewire wrap pins are arranged such that the pins are prevented fromextending through the front side.
 2. The mount apparatus of claim 1,wherein the wire wrap pins are accessible only from the back side. 3.The mount apparatus of claim 1, wherein the front side is defined by afront piece, the front piece including an inner side opposite the frontside, the wire wrap pins being arranged to contact a surface of theinner side of the front piece to prevent the wire wrap pins fromextending through the front side.
 4. The mount apparatus of claim 1,wherein the front side includes a front grid, the front grid defining aplurality of jack circuit board receptacles, the jack circuit boardcontacts being positioned within the jack circuit board receptacles ofthe front grid.
 5. The mount apparatus of claim 4, wherein the wire wrappins contact grid structure arranged between the jack circuit boardreceptacles of the front grid to prevent the wire wrap pins fromextending though the front grid.
 6. The mount apparatus of claim 1,wherein wire wrap pins are positioned within a plurality of firstthrough hole arrays formed in the circuit board, and the jack circuitboard contacts are positioned within a plurality of second through holearrays formed in the circuit board, and wherein at least one of thefirst through hole arrays is positioned between two second through holearrays.
 7. The mount apparatus of claim 6, wherein the first and secondthrough hole arrays are arranged in an alternating vertical manner. 8.The mount apparatus of claim 6, wherein the front side further includesjack circuit board receptacles, the jack circuit board receptacles beingaligned with the plurality of second through hole arrays formed in thecircuit board.
 9. The mount apparatus of claim 6, wherein the front sidefurther includes jack circuit board receptacles, the jack circuit boardreceptacles being offset from the plurality of first through hole arraysformed in the circuit board.
 10. A mount apparatus for use in across-connect system, the mount apparatus comprising: a) a front sideand a back side, the front side including jack circuit boardreceptacles, the back side including an array of through holes; b) acircuit board positioned between the front side and the back side; c)jack circuit board contacts positioned within the jack circuit boardreceptacles and electrically interconnected to the circuit board; d)wire wrap pins positioned within the array of through holes of the backside and electrically interconnected to the circuit board, the array ofthrough holes being aligned between the jack circuit board receptaclesand arranged such that the wire wrap pins are offset from the jackcircuit board receptacles to limit insertion of the wire wrap pinsthrough the back side.
 11. The mount apparatus of claim 10, wherein thefront side includes a front piece, the front piece including an innerside opposite the front side, the wire wrap pins being arranged tocontact a surface of the inner side of the front piece to limitinsertion of the wire wrap pins through the back side.
 12. The mountapparatus of claim 10, wherein wire wrap pins are positioned within aplurality of first contact hole arrays formed in the circuit board, andthe jack circuit board contacts are positioned with a plurality ofsecond contact hole arrays formed in the circuit board, and wherein atleast one of the first contact hole arrays is positioned between twosecond contact hole arrays.
 13. The mount apparatus of claim 12, whereinthe first and second contact hole arrays are arranged in an alternatingvertical manner.
 14. The mount apparatus of claim 13, wherein the jackcircuit board receptacles of the front side are aligned with the secondcontact hole arrays formed in the circuit board.
 15. The mount apparatusof claim 13, wherein the jack circuit board receptacles of the firstside are offset from the first contact hole arrays formed in the circuitboard.